Warka Vase

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The Warka Vase is a carved vase found in the Innana Temple complex of the ruins of the ancient city of Uruk. It is the first work of narrative relief sculpture, dated to ca. 3,200–3,000 BCE.^[1] It was excavated near Samawa, Iraq in 1940. The stone vase, which stands 3 feet, ¼ inches (1 m) tall^[1], is named after the city of Warka - known as Uruk to the ancient Sumerians - where it is believed to have been carved by the ancient Sumerians.

The vase has three registers - or tiers - of carving. The bottom register depicts the vegetation in the Tigris and Euphrates delta, such as the natural reeds and cultivated grain. Above this vegetation is a procession of animals, such as oxen and sheep presented in a strict profile view. The procession continues in the second register with nude males carrying bowls and jars of sacrificial elements, such as fruit and grain. The top register is a full scene, rather than a continuous pattern. In this register, the procession ends at the temple area. Inanna, one of the chief goddesses of Mesopotamia and later known as Ishtar in the Akkadian pantheon, stands, signified by two bundles of reeds behind her. She is being offered a bowl of fruit and grain by a nude figure. A figure in ceremonial clothing - presumably a chieftain/priest - stands nearby with the procession approaching him from behind.^[1]

The Warka Vase was one of the thousands of artifacts which were looted from the National Museum of Iraq during the 2003 Invasion of Iraq. The vase was later returned on June 12, 2003 in a broken state. The museum, however, stated that the vase was in no worse condition than it had been when first excavated. It is now in the process of being restored.^[2]

[edit] References

[edit] External Links

• The Warka Vase (ancientworlds.net)
• Lost Treasures from Iraq--Objects (Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago)